The most likely of all the acts rumoured to be performing at Worthy Farm in 2014
Andrew Trendell

12:14 20th March 2014

Summer grows stronger as the end of March grows nearer - it's only a matter of days until the line-up for Glastonbury 2014 is announced (we hope). As usual, loads of massive and unrealistic names like Bowie and Daft Punk have been bandied about - but let's get real for a second. There are a bunch of bands who probably actually will play Glastonbury this year. 

These are the bands who will be on the road or around the UK at the time of Glasto, or are strongly tipped by industry insiders to be gracing the bill down at Worthy Farm when June rolls around. Some may surprise you, some may not, either way - the Glastonbury 2014 line-up is shaping up to be pretty awesome indeed. 

So, pull your head out of the clouds. Here are 20 bands that we believe will either almost certainly or most probably be playing at Glastonbury 2014. 

  • Lorde: A UK tour has been a longtime coming for the chart-topping 'Royals' teen sensation. She'll definitely be around Europe at the time, and would go down a storm at Worthy Farm.

  • Kasabian: Bookies have stopped taking bets on this one, as it looks more or less certain that the lads from Leicester will be there - whether they're headlining or not - and they are thought to be the mysterious 'LONGY' who were named by Glasto as the Sunday night headliners in an April Fools press-release.

  • Manic Street Preachers: Glasto veterans the Manics are hitting the road with another ace album, Futurology. They've also said they'd like to return to Worthy Farm to mark the 20th anniversary of their seminal post-punk classic The Holy Bible, so it seems pretty likely that the Eavis family have asked them to do exactly that.

  • Interpol: They've announced a whole bunch of festival dates in support of their long-awaited upcoming fifth album, including one in London on 25 June 2014 - the day before Glastonbury kicks off. It's only a short ride down to the South West...

  • Massive Attack: The trip-hop pioneers are another band almost certain to appear, headlining a bunch of other boutique-y events around the time. Expect them to descend upon Glasto with darkness and huge beats.

  • Bombay Bicycle Club: They're having one hell of a year, are playing everywhere else, are the perfect festival band and will certainly be around the UK come Glasto time. Expect to hear 'Shuffle' sending the fields of Somerset into a frenzied bounce this June.

  • Franz Ferdinand: They're booked to bring their inimitable art-rock party to many of Europe's major festivals this summer, but none in the UK as of yet. They're playing in France around the time of Glasto so we can see them nipping across the sea to get Worthy Farm dancing in style.

  • Metronomy: They're dominating the festival scene this summer and seem to have Glasto weekend free. Just sayin'

  • John Grant: His UK tour dates lead up exactly to the Saturday of Glasto. It would be pretty rude if he didn't stick around to play (and he should, because he's brilliant)

  • Kelis: You'd struggle to find a more fun festival act that Kelis, and with you a gap in her schedule around Glasto weekend you should hope and expect to get your fill of 'Milkshake' and 'Jerk Ribs'.

  • The Horrors: With a stunning fourth album on the way and a raft of festival dates, it would be a shameful missed opportunity if they didn't bring a dash of psychedelic art-rock to Worthy Farm. They'll be around and seem to have that weekend free so we reckon they will.

  • Pet Shop Boys: Yes, really. Industry insiders are claiming that they're a dead cert for Worthy Farm, and we personally can't wait to bask in the nostalgic glory of 'West End Girls' and 'Go West'.

  • Eric Clapton: The Yardbirds, Cream and solo guitar superstar has announced dates in Glasgow and Leeds during Glasto week. Can we expect to hear the glorious tones 'Wonderful Tonight' and 'Layla' floating over Somerset too? We think so.

  • Ellie Goulding: She's had the most successful year of her career and will be doing the rounds when Glasto comes around. We wouldn't be surprised if she brought her new catalogue of chart-toppers to Pilton for a victory lap.

  • The National: They said that they wanted to play last year but weren't allowed, plus Glasto is the week before they kick off a bunch of UK dates. They'd be pretty amazing on The Other Stage as the sun sets, but that's just our opinion.

  • Klaxons: Insiders are also claiming that the daddies of New Rave will pretty much certainly be at Glasto too, which would be fun.

  • Kaiser Chiefs: They're all fired up on a new mission to reach as many people as possible, Glastonbury makes perfect sense.

  • Elbow: Rumour has it that they'll be playing the Pyramid Stage just before Arcade Fire. We can't think of anything more perfect

  • Jack White: The former White Stripes star has recently announced his second album, Lazaretto and a show at Poland's Open'er Festival on the weekend after Glastonbury. Maybe he should make his European trip a little longer...


Photo: wenn/Richard Gray/Ben Jablonski